"Keep On Keepin' On"

By: Lindsey Kane,

Christian Music Artist

Galatians 6:9, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” (NIV)

Doing good and living the life that Jesus calls us to can be tough! I can still remember how difficult it was when I was in middle school and everyone was going out and partying and doing things I didn’t feel comfortable with. It was extremely difficult to keep walking the straight and narrow path even when all my friends were doing otherwise. Sometimes I felt like I was the only one who cared about the things of Christ. Sometimes I felt like the only person in my school who wanted to truly live out my Christian faith. Then, someone I looked up to in my church told me about Galatians 6:9 and I went straight home and read it and memorized it. I had never read a more encouraging verse, and it became my theme verse in middle school and high school.

I have always been the kind of person who goes against the flow. I wasn’t comfortable “following the crowd,” and I knew that I would have to sacrifice some popularity and friends because of this. So, as you can imagine, at times I became very discouraged. However, when I got down about being one of the few Christ-followers in my school, I would remember this verse and I would rejoice in the fact that if I keep going, the Lord will reward me! The most exciting thing I found out during that time in my life was that Jesus Himself was my Reward! How awesome is that?!

When you find yourself seemingly alone in your beliefs and the way that you live your Christian life, take heart! Jesus encourages us through His Word that we are not alone! We should never give up because He is there with us and He is going to give us the strength to get through those tough times! 2 Chronicles 15:7 provides further encouragement: “But as for you, be strong and do not give up, for your work will be rewarded” (NIV).

Isn’t it inspiring to know that living for Christ is worth it? Living the life that God has called us to is truly what it’s all about! God’s desire for us is that we live the abundant life, not just some life of mediocrity. He wants the best for us; He wants us to know and follow Him. Our reward will then be found in Him, and He is the greatest reward anyone could ever imagine!

As I look back on my middle school and high school days, I am so thankful that I took the road less traveled. I am so thankful that I tried to live for Jesus each day. I have no regrets and I am already experiencing the reward He promised! Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying I’m perfect. By no means! I am far from perfect, but thankfully by His grace I am totally forgiven. Now I can live freely in the forgiveness, mercy, and grace that Jesus offers me each day because He is my Lord and Savior.

Living a Christ-like life in today’s culture can be hard at times, to say the very least! My encouragement to you is to keep going! Keep on keepin’ on as my West Texas dad would say. God says the same thing to you and me today and every day. Let’s keep surrendering to God and let’s start allowing Jesus to live through us day by day! After all, remember what Galatians 2:20 says: “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (ESV).

My Prayer for Today:

Father, Thank you so much that You are my Reward even when things get tough and it’s hard to live the Christian life. I pray that You would give me the strength I need to continue trusting you and walking by faith. I want to be a light to this world so I pray that You would shine through me so that when people see me, they will see You and come to know and love You as I do! In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Related Resources:

Being a Girl Who Leads: Becoming a Leader by Following Christ, by Shannon Kubiak Primicerio

Move Me Aside CD, by Lindsey Kane

Think About It:

Am I becoming weary and tired of trying to live a Christ-centered life? Why?

How can I battle against growing tired and weary in my Christian walk?

What are some ways that I can encourage others with the truths I learned in this devotional?

How can I live my life in such a way where I am a light to the world around me?

Live It:

Write in your journal about a time when you have grown weary and tired in your Christian walk and how that made you feel.

Find a Christian friend who can keep you accountable and challenge you to keep on keepin’ on with Jesus no matter how tough it gets.

Try to memorize and remind yourself of the truth of Galatians 6:9 each day, and pray that God will help you persevere in your faith walk.

Power Verses:

Romans 12:2, “Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.” (MSG)

1 Timothy 6:12, “Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called…” (NIV)

Hebrews 10:36, “You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.” (NIV)

© 2008 by Lindsey Kane. All rights reserved.

"Looking for Love"

By: Charlotte Cole

Deuteronomy 6:5, “Love God, your God, with your whole heart: love him with all that's in you, love him with all you've got!” (The Message)

Ever since I can remember, I was boy crazy. I wanted a boyfriend more than anything in the world. I wanted to be in love with someone who was in love with me. I had a million dreams and fantasies about love; I sang songs about romance, just wishing more than anything that it could be mine. My cousin on the other hand, was seeking a love relationship with Jesus. She dedicated herself to being connected with Him, singing songs about Him and spending her time devoted to Him. I went out and sought boys; she sought after Christ.

Now who do you think was more satisfied? Who do you think had more joy?

My cousin’s relationship with Jesus is still vibrant some 30 years later. It is based on truth, not appearances. Jesus sees her get ugly in her actions and in her thoughts. He sees her weaknesses and her strengths, but His love for her never changes. There is no jealousy, no drama in a relationship with Christ. If she strays from Him and later realizes what a mistake she has made, He is always there to take her back, forgiving her and washing her clean.

As my cousin has pursued Jesus, she has grown in the fruit of the Spirit, which includes love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). Though He has given her the gift of a husband to enjoy while she is here on earth, Jesus is still her first love.

My fun and emotional escapades with boys, on the other hand, always left my heart aching and my self-esteem deflated. The more time my cousin spent with Jesus, the more beautiful and godly she became from the inside, and it radiated through to the outside. The more I chased boys, however, focusing on my appearance and superficial personality traits, the less appealing I became to everyone. My low self-esteem was evident and unattractive. I didn’t have the never-failing confidence of who I was in Christ, so I was caught up in who I was in the world’s eyes.

The time and energy I spent pursuing boys and being rejected by them tore me apart. I thought that if only I were thinner or had a better complexion or whatever, all my needs would be met. I was so far off track. My needs were never met until I began to pursue Jesus. Pursuing Him not only fills our needs but it makes us beautiful from the inside out because in Him we find the greatest love of all – a love that shows us how beautiful we are to Him. In Jeremiah 31:3, the Lord says, “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness.” (NIV) Thankfully, Jesus’ love is everlasting. We cannot lose it, no matter how bad we blow it, and it is constant.

The temptations in life are unbelievable. It’s fun to grow up and it’s hard to wait for God’s timing to experience life, particularly the love and intimacy that come with a marriage relationship. But think of this: Your married years will far outlast your teen years. They will be unbelievably sweeter if you can pour the affection God is building up in you into a relationship with Christ, rather than into relationships with boys. When the time is right, He will reveal the man He has chosen for you if you are to be married, and you’ll experience the love and intimacy that comes as part of God’s design for marriage. In the meantime, focus your affection on Jesus and saturate yourself in His everlasting, unconditional love for you! Make it your goal to love Him with all your heart and with all you’ve got, and He will satisfy you and fulfill your heart’s desires in His perfect time.

My Prayer for Today:

Dear God, Help me to place my desire for a relationship on You. Help me to understand that only You will fill my void; only You will love me the way I want to be loved. Help me not to be tempted to satisfy the desires of my flesh with people You have not designed for me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Related Resources:

Authentic Beauty: The Shaping of a Set-Apart Young Woman, by Leslie Ludy

Eyes Wide Open: Avoiding the Heartbreak of Emotional Promiscuity, by Brienne Murk

Think About It:

What are the deepest desires of your heart?

Are you loving God with everything you’ve got?

Do you need to change your path today? If so, what are you waiting for?

If not, how can you help a friend who does?

Live It:

Make a list of specific things you can do to enhance your relationship with Jesus.

Do them!

Here’s one place to begin: Spend time in the Word of God, letting Him adore you with the love letter of His Word that He wrote just for you.

Power Verses:

Psalm 37:4, “Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.” (NIV)

Proverbs 22:11, “God loves the pure-hearted and well-spoken; good leaders also delight in their friendship.” (The Message)

© 2008 by Charlotte Cole. All rights reserved.

"God is God Even When..."

By: Samantha Roberts

Psalm 29:10, “The LORD sits enthroned over the flood; the LORD is enthroned as King forever.” (NIV)

It’s a dreary day outside today. It’s cold and wet, and there are so many clouds in the sky that you can’t even tell that there is a sun anymore. I have a hard time getting up and moving around on days like this because I’d much rather stay in bed or on the couch doing nothing. It makes me sad when everything surrounding me is gray and, well, rather blah.

It doesn’t always take bad weather, though, to make me feel like I’m surrounded by sadness. Sometimes the stuff of life just gets to be too much. Everyone else seems to be doing alright, but I can’t rise above this funk of feeling like things just aren’t right. I want to feel joy, but the sunshine is just gone. No matter where I look I can’t seem to catch even a glimpse of God. I feel all alone.

It seems like this dullness has taken over everything, but if I could get in a plane right now I’d be able to fly up past those clouds and see that way up there, past the storm that has me pinned down, the sun is still shinning just as bright as it does on the clearest summer day. The sun hasn’t gone anywhere, even if I can’t see it sitting in the sky or feel its warmth on my face and arms.

The same is true of God. We may not always be able to see or feel Him when the clouds of this life surround us, but He’s always there. Psalm 29, verse 10 says that God sits enthroned over the flood as King forever. He’s there as strong and as real as always, even when we’re so encased in the junk of this world that we can’t see Him.

We all experience times in life when the clouds and cold winds linger so long we feel like maybe the sun has disappeared forever. During these times we may be tempted to think that God has distanced Himself from us, leaving us to weather the storm on our own. He’s right where He’s always been, though, and we can find Him and see Him again when we seek Him above the clouds with all our hearts.

Next time you feel surrounded by sadness, remember that over all that is overwhelming you, the Son is still shining, sitting on His throne as King forever. You are not alone, and God has not gone anywhere. Someday soon, the clouds will pass and His light will shine bright on you again!

My Prayer for Today:

Father, on those days when all I can see are the clouds of sadness surrounding me, help me to remember that You are still God and that You are still with me. Give me strength to seek You in the storm and the faith to hold on until I feel Your warmth again. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Think About It:

When was the last time you felt like the sunshine of God’s love wasn’t anywhere to be found?

Looking back on that time, can you see now how God was still present in those circumstances? How do you know He was still there even if you couldn’t feel Him at the time?

If you are going through a time of sadness right now, what kinds of things can you do to seek Him with all your heart above the clouds?

If you know someone else who is going through a time of sadness, what can you do to encourage him or her?

Live It:

If you are experiencing a time of sadness, have someone pray with you and for you, asking God to break through the clouds and shine His light on you again.

Use your Bible concordance or topical index to look up passages of Scripture that deal with God’s faithfulness. Journal about the ways the Bible tells us that God is constant and faithful always (even when we don’t feel it).

Encourage someone else who can’t see God through the clouds, reminding him or her that He is still there.

Power Verses:

Deuteronomy 7:9, “Know therefore that the LORD your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commands.” (NIV)

Hebrews 13:5, “…God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’” (NIV)

Jeremiah 29:13, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” (NIV)

© 2008 by Samantha Roberts. All rights reserved.

"Party Time"

By: Angela Parsley

Revelation 19:9, “Then the angel said to me, ‘Write: “Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!”’ And he added, ‘These are the true words of God.’” (NIV)

In the last month, there have been three parties that I have not been invited to. People who I thought were my friends decided not to include me in these events for unknown reasons. How would that make you feel? For me, I felt rejected, unloved, and sad. It really hurt my feelings. A countless number of people assumed I was invited to these events and asked me if I was going. I had to simply reply, “No, I was not invited.” Talk about awkward silence or an occasional gasp. Those were the responses I got.

If we belong to Christ, when we get to Heaven we are all invited to the party of all parties. No one will be excluded there. God has a wonderful celebration planned for us. He will not leave anyone out whose name is written in His book of life. He always includes us even when others do not.

For now as we live on this earth, we can be like Cinderella, as one commentator has stated: we wait at home while the others go to the ball, but when the King sets His sights on us, we will be the only one He sees. Any rejection today will be well worth what is coming to us. What a glorious day it will be to be united to our Savior once and for all at the wedding banquet in Heaven!

My Prayer for Today:

Father, what a great privilege it is to be considered one of Yours! Thank You for not excluding me from Your party. Help me to see things through eyes of eternity and not just as they are in the here and now. Father, thanks for loving me continually and for preparing a special place for me in Heaven. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Think About it:

Have you ever been excluded from a party or an activity? How did it make you feel?

How does it make you feel that God never excludes those who belong to Him?

Live it:

Take time this week to read Ephesians chapter one. Let the truth of who God says you really are sink into your heart. In light of that, keep those thoughts stored in your heart when you are prone to doubt because you have been rejected in some way.

Observe people around you. Is there anyone who seems to be left out that you could include or befriend? What are some steps you can take to include them?

Power Verses:

Deuteronomy 31:6, “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you." (NIV)

John 14:2, “In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you.” (NIV)

John 15:15, “I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.” (NIV)

© 2008 by Angela Parsley. All rights reserved.

Resources

The Proverbs 31 Ministries online store, "Shop P31" offers lots of great resources just for you! You will find Bibles, devotionals, Bible studies, and lots of great general reading material that will help you in your daily faith walk. Here's the link! Shop P31

Happy Shopping!

Get Connected

Our Vision:

To join hands with today’s
young women as they speak up
for TRUTH and lead their generation
by living OUT LOUD for Christ.

If you know of any awesome Christian conferences, concerts, or other events in your area, let us know so we can post the information here and help others GET CONNECTED!

CONFERENCE CONNECTION!

She Speaks Conference

She Influences...

“…We have put our hope in the living God. He is the Savior of all people. Most of all he is the Savior of those who believe. Command those things. Teach them. Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young. Set an example for the believers in what you say and in how you live. Also set an example in how you love and in what you believe. Show the believers how to be pure. Until I come, spend your time reading Scripture out loud to one another. Spend your time preaching and teaching. Don't fail to use the gift the Holy Spirit gave you. He gave it to you through a message from God. It was given when the elders placed their hands on you.” 1Timothy 4:10-14 (NIRV)


Are you a young woman between the ages of 12 and 17?

Do you have a desire to impact your generation and future generations for Christ through speaking, writing, or simply by setting an example for those God places within your sphere of influence?

Have you made the bold decision to be a part of a generation that rises up for the Kingdom?

If these questions speak directly to your heart, the Next Generation track of our annual She Speaks Conference was designed especially for you. This conference will provide you with the tools you need to share your faith with confidence.

We know that it takes a great deal of courage to be set apart – To make godly choices when the world around you encourages you to make worldly choices - To use your voice, your words, and your life to speak up for Truth and lead your generation by living out loud for Christ.

During the conference, you will have the opportunity to attend sessions that will help to build your confidence as a speaker and/or as a writer. You will learn how to develop your message, how to dress for a speaking event, how to write a book, how to improve your writing skills, and much more. You will have the opportunity to spend time with women who have walked the path that you are now beginning. You will discover creative ways to share your faith and to introduce friends to a very real Jesus. You will be encouraged and inspired in ways that you cannot imagine.

In addition to a variety of breakout sessions to choose from, you will attend sessions that address the specific issues, concerns, and challenges that face your generation. You will be presented with information that will help you face these challenges with courage and conviction.

For conference updates, visit www.shespeaksconference.com

And...

MARK YOUR CALENDAR!

She Speaks Conference
July 31-August 2, 2009
Concord, NC

Call or email Kristen@Proverbs31.org if you have any questions about the conference.

Life Matters

This new area is coming soon...

Life Matters will address the specific issues and concerns facing your generation. These are some of the most exciting years of your life but being a teenager in today’s world can also be very confusing. You may have questions about dating, nutrition, or even movies. Maybe someone close to you is doing something that worries you (a friend experimenting with drugs or a sister cutting herself) and you want to help. Maybe you want to know what you can do to help in your community. Maybe you want to know what you can do to keep your little brother from using your makeup in his science experiments . . .


If it’s affecting your life and your generation – from the silly to the serious – you’ll find it in Life Matters!


Faith

Family Relationships

Friends

School

Peer Pressure

Eating Disorders

Dating

Modesty

Missions

Health and Beauty

What are boys thinking?

Mentoring

Social Activities

Drugs and Alcohol